The present invention generally relates to paint removal tools and methods for removing paint coatings and, more particularly, to an appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment removal tool and a method for locally removing an appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment.
Advanced aircraft, such as the F-18/EF, require the application of various advanced paint treatments or appliquxc3xa9 films to the mold line surface of the aircraft. Newly developed appliquxc3xa9 materials and other specialty coatings are of special interest for the aircraft industry since they provide a better corrosion protection than currently used paint treatments and have environmental and numerous other advantages over currently used paint treatments. The use of the appliquxc3xa9 materials and other specialty coatings is currently limited by the lack of production application methods that are cost effective and technically viable. One of the major problem areas is the cost of providing access to the mold line aircraft doors after the application of the paint or appliquxc3xa9 material. After application the paint treatments as well as the appliquxc3xa9 films cover the whole mold line surface of the aircraft including door access fasteners and latches. Consequently, direct access to the doors is precluded. This is a serious problem since a typical aircraft, such as the F-18/EF, has over 400 doors and thousands of removable fasteners that hold the doors in place.
Prior art methods utilized to remove the paint treatment or appliquxc3xa9 films from the door access fasteners and latches include cutting by hand around each fastener with a sharp knife, such as an exacto knife or similar cutting tool, and omission of paint or appliquxc3xa9 material in the areas of the door access fasteners and latches. Both prior art methods are costly and have disadvantages that limit the use of the paint treatments and appliquxc3xa9 films. Cutting on the mold line of an aircraft needs to be done manually and is labor intensive and time consuming. Further, using sharp cutting tools to cut around the door access fastener to remove the paint or appliquxc3xa9 material covering the door access fastener has a relatively high potential of damaging the aircraft structure. Cutting trough the paint or appliquxc3xa9 material into the outer skins of the aircraft could result in stress risers. Omission of the paint or appliquxc3xa9 material in the areas of the door access fasteners and latches requires the application of alternate treatments in these areas, which is costly and time consuming. If this alternate treatment is a paint type treatment the aircraft must be masked to omit paint in the areas that already received the paint treatment or the appliquxc3xa9 film, greatly increasing manufacturing costs. If the alternate treatment in the door access fastener area is a separate appliquxc3xa9 strip applied over the fastener area where it was initially omitted this strip is a constant maintenance and cost burden. The separate strip of appliquxc3xa9 material must be removed and reapplied every time a door is accessed. This increases labor time to remove and reinstall doors during fleet maintenance, increasing the cost and time needed for the fleet maintenance.
There has, therefore, arisen a need to provide a tool that makes it possible to quickly remove paint treatments and appliquxc3xa9 films from the door access fasteners after the application of paint treatments or appliquxc3xa9 films to the mold line surface of the aircraft without damaging the aircraft structure. There has further arisen a need to provide a tool that allows to remove the paint treatment and appliquxc3xa9 films locally from the door access fasteners at a relatively low cost and within a relatively short time. There has also arisen a need to provide a method for removing the paint treatment and appliquxc3xa9 films locally from the door access fasteners that allows the usage of advanced coatings and appliquxc3xa9 films on aircraft. There has further arisen a need to provide a method for removing the paint treatment and appliquxc3xa9 films locally from the door access fasteners that reduces the cost and time needed for aircraft fleet maintenance.
As can be seen, there is a need for an appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment removal tool that makes it possible to remove paint treatments or appliquxc3xa9 films locally from the door access fasteners after the application of paint treatments or appliquxc3xa9 films to the mold line surface of the aircraft without damaging the aircraft structure. Further, there is a need for an appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment removal tool that allows relatively fast, local removal of paint material of appliquxc3xa9 material covering door access fasteners in the airplane mold line, with reduced manual labor, at a relatively low cost, and within a relatively short time. Moreover, there is a need for a method for removing the paint treatment or appliquxc3xa9 films locally from the door access fasteners that allows the usage of advanced coatings and appliquxc3xa9 films on aircraft.
The present invention provides an appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment removal tool that is suitable for, but not limited to, the removal of paint treatments and appliquxc3xa9 films from the door access fasteners after the application of paint treatments or appliquxc3xa9 films to the mold line surface of the aircraft. The present invention further provides an appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment removal tool that makes it possible to remove paint and appliquxc3xa9 material quickly and locally without damaging the aircraft structure. The present invention also provides an inexpensive appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment removal tool that has a simple mechanical design, is relatively easy to operate at a low cost and with low maintenance. The present invention further provides a method for removing the paint treatment and appliquxc3xa9 films locally from the door access fasteners that allows the usage of advanced coatings and appliquxc3xa9 films on aircraft.
In one aspect of the present invention, an appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment removal tool comprises a central rotating shaft, at least three bearings, a cylindrical cavity, a locator pin, a spring, an arbor, and a collar. The central rotating shaft has a cylindrical shape and a central longitudinal axis, the central rotating shaft extends along the axis, is rotatable about the axis, and includes a first end and a second end, wherein the first end has a conically shape and includes at least three cavities equidistant from the central longitudinal axis and evenly spaced about the first end. Each of the at least three bearings is inserted into a corresponding cavity of the at least three cavities of the first end of the central rotating shaft. The cylindrical cavity extends within the central rotating shaft along the central longitudinal axis from the first end to the second end, wherein the cylindrical cavity includes a first portion having a first diameter and a second portion having a second diameter, and wherein the first diameter is smaller than the second diameter. The locator pin includes an elongated body, a shoulder and a tip, wherein the locator pin is inserted into the cylindrical cavity, wherein the locator pin is movable along the central longitudinal axis, and wherein the body of the locator pin extends the first end of the central rotating shaft, and wherein the shoulder of the locator pin has a diameter larger than the first diameter of the first portion of the cylindrical cavity. The spring is placed into the cylindrical cavity following the locator pin. The arbor has an elongated cylindrical shape and includes a first end and a shank portion, wherein the first end is disposed into the second portion of the cylindrical cavity extending coaxially with the central longitudinal axis forming a rigid connection. The collar is mounted onto the arbor, wherein the arbor is able to rotate inside the collar.
In another aspect of the present invention, an appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment removal tool comprises a central rotating shaft, at least three post bearings, a cylindrical cavity, a locator pin, a spring, an arbor, and a cylindrical collar. The central rotating shaft has a cylindrical shape and a central longitudinal axis, the central rotating shaft extends along the axis, is rotatable about the axis, and includes a first end and a second end, wherein the first end has a conically shape and includes at least three cavities equidistant from the central longitudinal axis and evenly spaced about the first end. Each of the at least three post bearings has a cylindrical body and is inserted into a corresponding cavity of the at least three cavities of the first end of the central rotating shaft. The post bearings are able to rotate about themselves. The cylindrical cavity extends within the central rotating shaft along the central longitudinal axis from the first end to the second end, wherein the cylindrical cavity includes a first portion having a first diameter and a second portion having a second diameter, and wherein the first diameter is smaller than the second diameter. The locator pin includes an elongated body, a shoulder and a tip, wherein the locator pin is inserted into the cylindrical cavity, wherein the locator pin is movable along the central longitudinal axis, and wherein the body of the locator pin extends the first end of the central rotating shaft, and wherein the shoulder of the locator pin has a diameter larger than the first diameter of the first portion of the cylindrical cavity. The spring is placed into the cylindrical cavity following the locator pin. The arbor has an elongated cylindrical shape and includes a first end and a shank portion, wherein the first end is disposed into the second portion of the cylindrical cavity extending coaxially with the central longitudinal axis forming a rigid connection. The cylindrical collar is mounted onto the arbor, wherein the arbor is able to rotate inside the collar.
In still another aspect of the present invention, an aircraft appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment removal tool comprises a central rotating shaft, at least three round ball bearings, a cylindrical cavity, a locator pin, a spring, an arbor, and a cylindrical collar. The central rotating shaft has a cylindrical shape and a central longitudinal axis, the central rotating shaft extends along the axis, is rotatable about the axis, and includes a first end and a second end, wherein the first end has a conically shape and includes at least three cavities equidistant from the central longitudinal axis and evenly spaced about the first end. Each of the at least three round ball bearings is inserted into a corresponding cavity of the at least three cavities of the first end of the central rotating shaft. The cylindrical cavity extends within the central rotating shaft along the central longitudinal axis from the first end to the second end, wherein the cylindrical cavity includes a first portion having a first diameter and a second portion having a second diameter, and wherein the first diameter is smaller than the second diameter. The locator pin includes an elongated cylindrical body, a shoulder and a tip, wherein the locator pin is inserted into the cylindrical cavity, wherein the locator pin is movable along the central longitudinal axis, and wherein the body of the locator pin extends the first end of the central rotating shaft, and wherein the shoulder of the locator pin has a diameter larger than the first diameter of the first portion of the cylindrical cavity. The spring is placed into the cylindrical cavity following the locator pin. The arbor has an elongated cylindrical shape and includes a first end and a shank portion, wherein the first end is disposed into the second portion of the cylindrical cavity extending coaxially with the central longitudinal axis forming a rigid connection. The cylindrical collar is mounted onto the arbor, wherein the arbor is able to rotate inside the collar.
In a further another aspect of the present invention, an appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment removal tool comprises a central rotating shaft, at least three post bearings, a cylindrical cavity, a locator pin, a spring, an arbor, a cylindrical collar, a jam nut, and a washer. The central rotating shaft has a cylindrical shape and a central longitudinal axis, the central rotating shaft extends along the axis, is rotatable about the axis, and includes a first end and a second end, wherein the first end has a conically shape and includes at least three cavities equidistant from the central longitudinal axis and evenly spaced about the first end. The central rotating shaft has an outer diameter determined by the size of the area from which the appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment need to be removed. Each of the at least three post bearings is inserted into a corresponding cavity of the at least three cavities of the first end of the central rotating shaft. The post bearings are able to rotate about themselves. The cylindrical cavity extends within the central rotating shaft along the central longitudinal axis from the first end to the second end, wherein the cylindrical cavity includes a first portion having a first diameter and a threaded second portion having a second diameter, and wherein the first diameter is smaller than the second diameter. The locator pin includes an elongated cylindrical body, a shoulder and a tip, wherein the locator pin is inserted into the cylindrical cavity, wherein the locator pin is movable along the central longitudinal axis, and wherein the body of the locator pin extends the first end of the central rotating shaft, and wherein the shoulder of the locator pin has a diameter larger than the first diameter of the first portion of the cylindrical cavity. The spring is placed into the cylindrical cavity following the locator pin. The arbor has an elongated cylindrical shape and includes a first end and a shank portion, wherein the threaded first end is screwed into the second portion of the cylindrical cavity extending coaxially with the central longitudinal axis forming a rigid connection. The cylindrical collar includes a guide bearing and is mounted onto the arbor, wherein the arbor is able to rotate inside the collar. The jam nut secures the collar proximate to the second end of the central rotating shaft. The washer is placed between the shoulder of the locator pin and the spring.
In still another aspect of the present invention, a method for locally removing appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment from a surface that includes at least one fastener having a fastener drive and forming a mold line with said surface, wherein an appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment has been applied to said surface covering said surface including said fastener forming a mold line contour around said fastener comprises the steps of: inserting a pin into the fastener drive of the fastener, providing contact of at least three bearings with the mold line contour around the fastener, wherein the bearings are located equidistant from the pin, rotating a shaft including the pin and the bearings, controlling the shaft during rotation, separating the appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment at the mold line of the fastener by rotating the bearings while touching the mold line contour of the fastener, peeling the separated appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment off, and providing access to the fastener.
In yet another aspect of the present invention, a method for locally removing appliquxc3xa9 film and paint treatment from a surface that includes at least one fastener having a fastener drive and forming a mold line with said surface, wherein an appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment has been applied to said surface covering said surface including said fastener forming a mold line contour around said fastener comprises the steps of: providing a surface including at least one fastener having a fastener drive and forming a mold line with the surface, wherein an appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment has been applied to the surface covering the surface including the fastener forming a mold line contour around the fastener; providing an appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment removal tool; inserting the locator pin into the fastener drive of the fastener; pushing the appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment removal tool toward the surface by depressing the spring until the bearings touch the mold line contour around the fastener; providing rotation to the central rotating shaft; controlling the appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment removal tool with the collar; separating the appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment at the mold line of the fastener by rotating the bearings about the central longitudinal axis and about themselves while touching the mold line contour of the fastener; peeling the separated appliquxc3xa9 film or paint treatment off; and providing access to the fastener.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims.